Bremen Conventional handling and logistics

Bremen’s city ports are specialists for handling conventional break bulk and heavy lift cargo. Bulk goods are also handled here. Numerous logistics centres are based in Bremen, together with Germany’s leading Freight Village.

With a wide range of sites, trimodal connections and a high number of jobs, Bremen’s freight village offers an impressive concentration of logistics expertise. Originally set up in 1985, it rapidly became a model for the development of further freight villages in Germany and other European countries. This hub for transport and logistics, courier and parcel services is still the leading location in Germany and ranks in second place in a European comparison.

In Bremen, the BLG Logistics Group operates one of the most modern logistics complexes anywhere in Europe exclusively for the Tchibo company. In line with its slogan “A new world every week”, Tchibo supplies more than 54,000 sales outlets in Germany and other European countries from the high-bay warehouse with a changing range of merchandise at weekly intervals. In the automated incoming goods department, up to 50,000 cardboard boxes are processed by four fully-automatic palletising stations, automatically wrapped and put into storage.

Two large logistics centres not far from Bremen freight village (GVZ) provide a comprehensive range of logistics services for the automobile industry. Vehicle parts and components from the manufacturers and around 300 different suppliers are carried by rail or truck to the centres, where they are processed in accordance with the instructions of the production plants: they are made up into sets, in some cases machined or pre-assembled, packed in containers and made ready for shipping. The main destinations are the assembly lines of German manufacturers in South Africa, North and South America and some countries in Asia.

The terminals at Neustädter Hafen are specialists when it comes to conventional cargo handling. Their service portfolio is aimed primarily at project cargo, iron and steel products, forest products and handling containers and heavy lift with floating cranes which can cope with weights of up to 650 tonnes. This site went into operation in 1965 and now unites all the benefits of a universal port.

Industriehafen accounts for roughly half the total ocean freight handled at the ports in Bremen City. Virtually all kinds of ocean freight cross the quays here, from building materials, timber and bulk cargo, steel and steel products right through to containers, project cargo and automotive and industrial plant components. In recent years, the approx. 50 companies located here have made substantial investments in their buildings and equipment. An ambitious master plan contains a list of the specific measures which are planned to revitalise Industriehafen as an economic location.

Commodities such as grain, coffee, cocoa and fish meal arrive by ship or rail at Bremen’s Holz- und Fabrikenhafen where they are transhipped, stored or processed right there on the spot. Thanks to its convenient position close to the city centre and sufficient water depth for seagoing vessels, Holz- und Fabrikenhafen is an excellent location for production companies and the service sector. Firms located here include J. MÜLLER Weser, Bremer Rolandmühle, Hansakai Umschlagbetriebe and the D. Wandel company.

The expansion of Weserhafen Hemelingen, located above the Weser weir, began in 1968 in response to the growing volumes of barge traffic. The facilities on the Middle Weser handle primarily dry bulk such as sand and gravel, but also handle steel and metals, scrap and recyclable goods, diverse building materials and coal for the nearby power station in Bremen-Hastedt. Weserhafen Hemelingen is responsible for 20 per cent of the total barge cargoes handled by Bremen’s ports.

Egerland Car Terminal offers a full range of services for the automobile import and export business, which accounts for tens of thousands of vehicles per annum. The portfolio includes terminal services, shipbroking and agent services, tally, stevedoring, mooring and storage. On the site of the former Vulkan shipyard, Egerland offers technical services including pre-delivery inspection, de-waxing and preservation as well as superstructures and conversion.

In 1877, Hohentorshafen offered the best conditions for establishing the first cargo handling company – Bremer Lagerhausgesellschaft, now the BLG Logistics Group. Meanwhile, however, cargo is no longer transhipped here at the harbour basin on the left bank of the Weser, which evolved from the former Sicherheitshafen and Woltmershausen Canal. With only a few exceptions, the businesses that operate here – shipping companies, a repair yard for barges and a few trading companies – are not dependent on being close to the port.

Facts and Figures: Quay length: 420 m Water depth: 3.0 m

Bremen/Bremerhaven – the Location

The ports of Bremen/Bremerhaven are among the most important universal ports in Europe. No matter whether containers, cars, bulk and bulk goods, hazardous goods or project loading – the terminals at Bremen and Bremerhaven work with almost every type of cargo. In addition, the port group with the Columbus Cruise Center Bremerhaven offers one of the most modern and powerful passenger terminals for cruise ships. The distinctive division of labor between Bremen and Bremerhaven is the guarantee for success and as a characteristic feature of the twin ports.